February 17, 2006

Soyco Veggy Singles

One word comes to mind when I ate the Soyco Veggy Singles -- RUN. Don't walk away from these things, run and run quickly away from the faux dairy aisle.

We all know that individually wrapped cheese singles are an abomination of nature. Pallid yellow or close-to-school-bus-orange are not exactly what comes out of any dairy producing animal and most edible items are rarely rubbery and moist at the same time. Heck, I've even seen them stored NEXT to the dairy case, as if the clerks were trying to say, "Come on, we all know this isn't real dairy, so let's make room for the sour cream."

Soyco Veggy Singles, in the cheddar flavor, are that crazy yellowish/orange color we as Americans have come to embrace from our dairy product. The consistency is such that when I tried to remove the item from the paper, if not properly chilled (as in left on the counter for a few minutes), rather than pull away it leaves a smear and I was forced to make my sandwich with whatever I could scrape off with my fingernail. When I tried to melt them into scrambled eggs, instead of the creamy consistency I'm used to, it was oily clumps of orange goo. And if this all isn't appetizing enough, the taste has a slight bitter chemical aftertaste.

The packaging for Veggy Singles is not labeled "dairy free", it does boast the product as "Nature's Alternative to Cheese" and "Soy Nutritious" -- all things that anyone avoiding dairy and animal products in general would seek out. However, vegans beware, included in the ingredients are: skim milk proteins and casein (a dried skim milk protein).

Veggy Singles are an alternative to cheese singles if you are looking for something that has a concerning texture, surprising ingredients and a disappointing taste. At least with good old standard cheese singles I already know where the questions lie and I still enjoy the taste.

About Galaxy Foods Company:

Galaxy Foods Company, started in 1980 and publicly traded in 1987, is the leading producer of healthy dairy and dairy related alternatives to the retail and foodservice markets (according to the website.) The company's product lines for the U.S. include:
* Veggie Products - dairy alternatives made with soy
* Veggy Products, the Soy Nutritious line - dairy alternatives made with soy, but no preservatives (I know, it confuses me too)
* Rice Products - dairy alternatives made with brown rice
* Vegan Products - dairy alternatives that are dairy free (ah ha!) and made with soy
* Wholesome Valley Organic - products are made from organic milk

Ingredients for cheddar flavor Soyco Veggy Singles:
soy beverage (filtered water, gmo-free isolated soy protein and soymilk solids), skim milk proteins, nonhydrogenated soybean oil, natural flavors, (no msg), organic tofu), casein (a dried skim milk protein), non hydrogenated , trisodium phosphate, corn starch, salt, tricalcium phosphate, lactic acid, food colors (beta apo carotenal and natural annato color), vitamin e (antioxidant), vitamin a palmitate